11 San Diego breweries you need to visit according to actual San Diego brewers

"They make amazing true-to-style beers, plus some killer bright, hoppy west coast styles. Harlot (a Belgian IPA) is a modern classic." - Andrew Schwartz, "Commissioner of Flavor" (head of special projects) at Modern Times Beer.

"I've known (co-founders) Travis (Smith) and Doug (Constantiner) for a long time and have watched them grow. Travis has moved on but I have strong faith that the beer will not change. Hops, Stouts, Lagers, and Tart/Sour/Wild ales all done to the highest level of quality." - Jeff Bagby, founder of Bagby Beer Co.

"They're just really serious about everything they do. (The Harlot) is not necessarily a style I would brew; no one really makes those anymore. (But) when I want that flavor profile, it's just executed so well. The medal winner (the Coachman session IPA, which won a Great American Beer Festival medal) is a testament to that. They’re very uncompromising." - Steve Gonzalez, senior manager of brewing and innovation at Stone Brewing.

"Pizza Port [is] such a great representation of what San Diego craft beer is and tastes like." - Doug Constantiner, founder and CEO of Societe Brewing Co.

"There might not be a better situation in San Diego than drinking a Jetty IPA and hearing 'pizza for Andrew' over the intercom." - Andrew Schwartz, "Commissioner of Flavor" (head of special projects) at Modern Times Beer.

Yelp / Nicolas O.3of11

Burning Beard Brewing Co.785 Vernon Way, El Cajon

"[They're] experts in malt complexity. They make some incredibly deep beers." - Andrew Schwartz, "Commissioner of Flavor" (head of special projects) at Modern Times Beer.

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Automatic Brewing / Blind Lady Ale House3416 Adams Ave., San Diego

"The brewery it seems I end up going to the most is Automatic/Blind Lady Ale House. The Automatic beers are outstanding and they have a unique, hand made quality to them. Add that to BLAH's perfect atmosphere and high quality food and you get an amazing experience." - Sean Farrell, director of brewing at Pizza Port Brewing.

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Rip Current BrewingMultiple locations, San Marcos and San Diego

"I thought, 'Oh, another IPA brewery.' But then I tried it and wow. It just raises the bar for everybody." - Steve Gonzalez, senior manager of brewing and innovation at Stone Brewing.

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Port Brewing / The Lost Abbey155 Mata Way
Ste. 104, San Marcos

"The Lost Abbey is probably one of the best breweries in the world and makes such exquisite Belgian-style ales with just enough experimentation to bring Old World beers up to speed." - Doug Constantiner, Founder and CEO of Societe Brewing Co.

"I've been friends with these folks for years. They have always made great beer in a wide range of styles. Never a mistake stopping by for several beers here." - Jeff Bagby, founder of Bagby Beer Co.

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Bagby Beer Company601 S. Coast Hwy, Oceanside

"Bagby Beer Co. because of how well owner and brewmaster Jeff Bagby is able to execute such a wide variety of beer styles." - Doug Constantiner, Founder and CEO of Societe Brewing Co.

"Jeff and his crew over at Bagby have been honing their craft for over 20 years and it shows in their range of beers. With over 25
house-made offerings on tap every day, you'd be hard pressed to find one that nearly flawless. It's inspiring." - Tomme Arthur, co-founder and director of brewery operations at the Lost Abbey.

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South Park Brewing Company1517 30th St., San Diego

"South Park Brewing and Societe kill it with traditional styles. Both excel in the hoppy stuff but I think Societe's Belgian's and lagers and South Park's English style ales are world class." - Sean Farrell, director of brewing at Pizza Port Brewing.

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Rouleur Brewing Company5840 El Camino Real #101, Carlsbad

"Rouleur is a 2-year-old brewery located in Carlsbad and they are just now hitting their stride. My favorite is their Mosaic Pale Ale Called Bonkeur." - Tomme Arthur, co-founder and director of brewery operations at the Lost Abbey.

"Burgeon is a known entity for their awesome IPAs. But their Pils and Grisette also get my fair attention. Dog friendly space with a very relaxed vibe, this is a great place to chillax after work." - Tomme Arthur, co-founder and director of brewery operations at the Lost Abbey.

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Twisted Horn Mead & Cider1042 La Mirada Ct., Vista

"The one I go to the most [is] Twisted Horn. They do meads and ciders and they’re excellent." - Steve Gonzalez, senior manager of brewing and innovation at Stone Brewing.

Yelp / Chidu K.

We asked brewers at six San Diego breweries which of San Diego County's 150 craft breweries you should actually visit the next time you're in town. See their list of 11 favorites in the gallery above.

San Diego is many things to many travelers. It's a surf hub, a heaven of unbeatable weather, the home of the Padres and fish taco central. But to a select group of discerning drinkers, it's something else: a major capital of American craft beer.

As of January, San Diego County is home to more than 150 craft breweries. There are a lot of well-known ones in the mix there: Modern Times, Pizza Port, Societe, Pure Project, Bagby and two lodestars of the California brewing industry, Lost Abbey and Stone. Beer is as close to synonymous with San Diego as any city in the United States.

"I've been in the craft beer industry a long time, since the early '80s, so I've seen it from the very beginning," he says. "For a long time, San Diego was a desert for craft beer. Nothing was going on in San Diego until the late '90s and then it just took off. It's become a craft beer mecca in California and known around the country."

McCormick credits Stone Brewing, which was founded in 1996, as the catalyst for that change. Along with Karl Strauss Brewing, AleSmith, and Pizza Port's brewpub, it was an early pioneer in the San Diego brew scene. Stone, aided by its excessively hoppy IPAs, "grew quickly and made a name for itself."

Like in many American cities, Stone Brewing's senior manager of brewing and innovation, Steve Gonzalez, says the scene is "definitely evolving."

IPAs are, as they've long been, in demand, but Mexican-style lagers are becoming more popular around town, too. On menus across town, there's just a much bigger selection than ever before.

"A really big trend is [breweries offer] a 'one-stop shop' a little more," Gonzalez continues. "Stone was where you went for great West Coast IPAs, others you went to for sours. Now, you don't just have to go to Lost Abbey for a really great sour or Belgian. You can get really great lagers from just about every brewery now. The plethora of styles that a brewery offers has become more [diverse], but they're all really good for the most part."

Gonzalez says brewers have "really stepped their game up" in San Diego in the last couple years, as breweries across California face proliferating competition. While craft brewers hone their abilities to produce increasingly innovative and well-made beer, drinkers have more incredible choices than they've ever had before, and particularly in San Diego.

All the brewers here are "chasing world-class perfection in a glass," says Tomme Arthur, who co-founded the Lost Abbey in San Marcos in 2006.

"We have all banded together in the past 25 years to cultivate a culture of 'better is possible,'" he adds. "No one is happy with the status quo. It feels like a town with an amazing restaurant scene and everyone is riffing off the success of their neighbor looking for better balance, flavor expressions and bold results."

At the end of the day, however, beer fans are still seeking IPAs. That's good news for San Diego craft brewers, who can usually get their hands on some of the rarer Southern Hemisphere hops, like those from South Africa and New Zealand.

"We're lucky," Gonzalez says. "We get to be a little at the forefront."

San Diego has become such a beer destination in recent years that a group of investors are even plotting a Museum of Beer. That may be a fitting tribute to brewers in the Southern California city where, as Burgeon Beer Company's assistant taproom manager Lucia D'Elia says, "people here pour their heart and soul into what they do and it shows in the products they produce."

As in the Bay Area, there is a tight community of brewers in San Diego — D'Elia says they "work together, collaborate together, and hang out together" — and often, you might find brewers drinking beers from other breweries.

Alyssa Pereira is a culture editor and contributing beer writer for SFGATE. She previously worked for CBS San Francisco and SPIN Magazine and has contributed to Good Beer Hunting, Paper, Vice's i-D and Paste, among others. She is a Bay Area native and graduated from New York University and SFSU.